Labour Leader and Health Spokesperson Alan Kelly T.D has slammed and the described as disgraceful the fact that home help staff are not being regularly testing for Covid-19 despite coming into close contact with elderly and high-risk people on a regular basis in the community. Deputy Kelly was speaking after receiving a reply to a…

Speaking after Fórsa secured agreement from the Department of Education and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to regularise the pay conditions and pensions of block grant paid school secretaries and caretakers, Labour Education Spokesperson Aodhán Ó Ríordáin has congratulated Fórsa and the school secretaries for a successful campaign. Deputy Ó Ríordáin said: “School…

Speaking after the regulations allowing the CervicalCheck Tribunal came into force today, Labour Leader and Health Spokesperson Alan Kelly said the Minister should not have signed the Statutory Instrument allowing the tribunal to kick in before dealing with the issues raised by the 221+ group on Friday.  Deputy Kelly said: “The 221+ group met with…

Labour Leader Alan Kelly has called on the Government to ensure the Covid-19 Adaptation Fund for hospitality/tourism is extended to all cafés and restaurants. In order to qualify for the grant at present, a restaurant or café must either have a Wine Retailer’s On-Licence or a Special Restaurant Licence and must provide proof of this…

Labour Housing Spokesperson, Senator Rebecca Moynihan says the Government must prioritise cost/affordable rental. Senator Moynihan was speaking after the release of CSO figures showing that people who live in rental accommodation are at most risk of consistent poverty. The CSO analysis shows that 13.5% of those who live in rental accommodation are in consistent poverty…

Minister has fudged the issue since he took office Already an oversupply of shared accommodation Speaking after it was revealed in the Sunday Times that a report by Department of Housing officials has made a strong case to Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien not to outlaw “the shared accommodation model, Labour Housing Spokesperson, Senator Rebecca Moynihan…

Labour Spokesperson on Higher Education Senator Annie Hoey is calling for any and all Pandemic Unemployment Payments to be automatically included in the income disregard for applicants to the SUSI grant scheme.   Senator Hoey said:   “It has come to my attention that students who have been in receipt of the PUP payment are…

Answers needed as to why it took the Department two days to tell schools to withdraw the faulty hand sanitiser after it emerged they knew on Tuesday. Labour T.D Aodhán Ó Ríordáin has written to the Chair of the Oireachtas Education Committee to ask him to convene an extraordinary meeting next week and to ask…